Autosomal dominant
Autosomal dominant is one of many ways that a genetic trait or disorder can be passed down through families.
In an autosomal dominant disease, if you get the variant gene from only one parent, you can get the disease. Often, one of the parents may also have the disease. However, many autosomal dominant disorders' gene variant arises de novo, or for the first time in a family, in the affected person.
Gene
A gene is a short piece of DNA. Genes tell the body how to build specific proteins. There are about 20,000 genes in each cell of the human body. T...
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Inheriting a disease, condition, or trait depends on the type of chromosome affected (nonsex or sex chromosome). It also depends on whether the trait is dominant or recessive.
Sex chromosome
Sex-linked dominant is a rare way that a genetic trait or disorder can be passed down through families. One abnormal gene on the X chromosome can ca...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleA single variant gene on one of the first 22 nonsex (autosomal) chromosomes from either parent can cause an autosomal disorder.
Autosomal
Chromosomes are structures found in the center (nucleus) of cells that carry long pieces of DNA. DNA is the material that holds genes. It is the bu...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleDominant inheritance means a variant gene from one parent can cause disease. This happens even when the matching gene from the other parent is normal. The variant gene dominates.
This disease can also occur as a new condition in a child when neither parent has the variant gene.
A parent with an autosomal dominant condition has a 50% chance of having a child with the condition. This is true for each pregnancy.
It means that each child's risk for the disease does not depend on whether their sibling has the disease.
Children who do not inherit the variant gene will not develop or pass on the disease.
If someone is diagnosed with an autosomal dominant disease, their parents should also be tested for the variant gene.
Examples of autosomal dominant disorders include Marfan syndrome and neurofibromatosis type 1.
Marfan syndrome
Marfan syndrome is a disorder of connective tissue. This is the tissue that strengthens the body's structures. Disorders of connective tissue affect...
Read Article Now Book Mark ArticleNeurofibromatosis type 1
Neurofibromatosis-1 (NF1) is an inherited disorder in which nerve tissue tumors (neurofibromas) form in the:Upper and lower layers of the skinNerves ...
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Anna C. Edens Hurst, MD, MS, Associate Professor in Medical Genetics, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
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